Top Trump Aide Says He Can Win On 1st Ballot In Cleveland

“A top aide to Donald Trump told lawmakers on Thursday that the campaign sees a path to winning the nomination outright and avoiding a messy contested convention.

Ed Brookover, who manages Trump’s delegate strategy, appeared bullish on the GOP front-runner’s prospects after meeting with roughly a half-dozen lawmakers.

“Our path to 1,237 is pretty clear,” Brookover told reporters after the meeting at the Capitol Hill Club. “I think we’re on a glide path.”

Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.), one of the first lawmakers to endorse Trump and the person who organized Thursday’s gathering, said the discussion included an estimate that Trump could surpass the minimum of 1,237 and hit 1,265 delegates.

“We got to 1,265 in a conservative way,” Collins said, adding that the Trump campaign expects to get 85 of out New York’s 95 delegates after the state’s Tuesday primary.”